Independent Reading

A large part of what grade 7 students do in our class is read, independently and silently, in class, from books that they choose. It is important that students choose books not only that interest them, but also books that match their reading level. I will spend time over the first couple of weeks of school assessing students' reading levels and offering suggestions of books that might "fit".

As students gather their materials for the new year, they should also look for books. These might be novels, non fiction, or even poetry anthologies. Maybe students could make one last trip to library before school starts!

Here's a good article that discusses the importance of independent reading.

Pendragon Theatre

I was a volunteer usher at Pendragon's matinee performance of The Jungle Book on Tuesday. It was a packed house, as kids from the Saranac Lake Youth Program were in attendance.

The show was great, and seeing all those students had me thinking "back to school".

Seventh grade students at Saranac Lake Middle School participate in a project each March called "Page to Stage," in which we enlist the help of the pros at Pendragon in order to introduce middle schoolers to the dramatic arts.